Airport extortion

Travelers are shocked by the “outrageous” rate of exchange from the airport exchange offices and the extortion practiced in the “Henri Coanda” Airport.

If you have to wait inside “Henri Coanda” Airport, it’s better to bring with you: water, food, tea or coffee in a thermos bottle. And if you do, make sure you don’t take them with you in the transit area, according to security rules.

If you plan to exchange your currency there, you better forget the idea. You will lose over 50 bani per euro comparative to the current rate of exchange. Irrespective of the changes that may occur in the reference rate of exchange, in the airport;s exchange offices you can only get 3.7 lei/euro. And if you want to buy euro currency, you have to pay 4.7 lei/euro. The rate of exchange is available for all the three exchange points from the transit “arrivals” and “departures” zone.

This situation has been off-handedly tolerated  by Gabriel Tara, general director of Otopeni Airport, for 13 years (1996-2009), with a small break between 2003 and 2004, when he was secondary general director. He could have imposed certain limits both for the exchange points and for the restaurants and taxi cars that practice extortion prices in quasi-monopoly situations. But, he didn't do it.